BRITAIN MARKS FIRST ANNIVERSARY OF QUEEN ELIZABETH II’S DEATH

Fri 08 September 2023:

On the one-year anniversary of the passing of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s King Charles III thanked the public for their support throughout his first year in the role of king.

The 74-year-old British head of state recalled his “great affection” for his mother, her life, and her public service in a brief statement released on Friday.

“I am deeply grateful, too, for the love and support that has been shown to my wife and myself during this year as we do our utmost to be of service to you all,” he added.

On Thursday, Londoners expressed various feelings about Charles’ first year.

Some said he was correct not to implement major reforms too soon. “He’s got a hard act to follow but he will I think change things,” Joanne Hughes, 61, told AFP outside Buckingham Palace.

Despite 161 ceremonial engagements and tours of the United Kingdom’s four nations, others were unconcerned about the new king – and the monarchy in general.

“The monarchy is dying,” remarked Mimi Jaffer-Clarke, a nursing student. “If he wants it to not die, then he needs to try to get the younger generation to like him – and we just don’t.”

Commemorations will be low-key on Friday, with the king – who is at his Scottish Highland estate of Balmoral – not expected at any official engagement.

He and wife Camilla will attend nearby Crathie Kirk, the late queen’s place of worship, for private prayers and a moment of reflection.

In London, the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery will mark Charles’s accession by firing a 41-gun ceremonial salute in Hyde Park from 12:00pm (11:00 GMT).

Members of the Honourable Artillery Company – the oldest regiment in the British Army – will fire a 62-gun salute from the Tower of London from 1:00pm (12:00 GMT).

Both regiments were involved in firing the Death Gun salutes to mark the queen’s death, and the Proclamation salutes to mark Charles’s new reign.